The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) are committed to promoting ethical journalism. The IFJ Declaration of Principles on the Conduct of Journalists (adopted by 1954 IFJ Congress) has become the guiding principles for journalists and their unions to enforce ethics and quality in journalism.

The universal principles have been endorsed by unions and associations of journalists coming from vastly different cultures and traditions. The IFJ code of ethics embraces the core values of journalism – truth, independence and the need to minimise harm.

Over the years the IFJ and EFJ has developed programmes and activities to help journalists and their unions to enforce the code and counter challenges and threats to independent and ethical journalists. Recent programmes include the Ethical Journalism Initiative, Media against Racism in Sport and Media in Europe for Diversity Inclusiveness. The EFJ is also a partner of the coalition Ethical Journalism Network - to promote ethical standards in journalism.

On 1st December, the Council of Europe’s Steering Committee on Media and Information Society (CDMSI) invited the EFJ, digital start-ups and media groups to discuss “Media adaptation strategies and expectations” together with representatives of the Council of Europe government representatives. Rasmus Kleis Nielsen, Director of Research at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism of Oxford University, presented at the outset the results of a recent study on Challenges and opportunities for news media and journalism in an increasingly digital, mobile and social media environment – prepared for the Council of Europe on this topic. “The move to an…

More solidarity among journalists is needed to improve the rights of freelancers working in conflict zones and to support the work of local journalists on the ground, agreed the participants of the workshop “Interpreting crisis: Reporting on Migration, Asylum Seekers and Syrian conflict”. The event took place on 24 October 2016 at the IFJ-EFJ headquarters in Brussels and was co-organised by the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ), the Finnish Institute in London, the Finnish Cultural Institute for the Benelux, Felm and MDI. The participants were concerned that the leading newspapers are not sending their own correspondents, not even using reports…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) and the Alliance Internationale de Journalistes (AIJ) successfully organised yesterday (4 October) a roundtable discussion on Refugees and Migrants, the inconvenient truths – Journalism against bias and stereotypes in Brussels. Migrants and refugees have suddenly jumped at the top of the agenda and media organisations play a crucial role in shaping the public opinion. How to cover the refugee crisis with more humanity? How best to communicate with media? Many journalists, NGOs representatives and intergouvernmental organisations (UNCHR, OIM) dealing with migration issues attended the event to reflect and build a constructive dialogue on these fondamental questions. The biggest requests @UNmigration…

A mission to Serbia by the Ethical Journalism Network and the European Federation of Journalists this month has called for urgent action to strengthen journalism and independent media across the country. Aidan White, EJN Director, and EFJ Project Officer Mehmet Koksal talked with media leaders and journalism support groups during their visit on September 16-17. They found that problems of political bias, lack of transparency in ownership, manipulated state funding for favoured media, and a desperately weak economic situation all contribute to a deeply flawed media system. “The media crisis cannot be allowed to get worse,” said White. “It poisons…

As well as launching new guidelines for migration coverage at the Jakarta World Forum for Media Development, the EJN co-hosted a session about online regulation which looked into ways journalists and others can define, identify and respond to hate speech. Today, the EJN is happy to announce that our 5–point test for hate speech is now available in seven new languages, including Albanian, Dutch, Indonesian, Macedonian, Serbian, Turkish, Ukrainian. The test is already available in Arabic, English and French. The 5-point test and its translations are supported by the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ).

Suspended jail sentences for whistleblowers (12 months and 1.500 EUR penalty for Antoine Deltour and 9 months and 1.000 EUR penalty for Raphaël Halet) and acquittal for the investigative journalist (Edouard Perrin), that’s the verdict of Luxembourg court in the LuxLeaks case. Judges in Luxembourg delivered today (29/06/2016) a verdict in LuxLeaks case related to the prosecution of two whistleblowers and a journalist for disclosing confidential documents from auditing firm PwC that showed how 340 multinational companies used secret tax deals to avoid paying into the public coffers. A European Parliament’s study estimates that EU countries lose 50 billion to 70 billion EUR in tax…

The European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) is strongly supporting the initiative of its affiliate in Greece the Journalists’ Union of Macedonia and Thrace Daily Newspapers (ESIEMTH) – who drafted a proposal for the adoption of the Anti-racism Ethics Code of the Greek journalists called The Charter of Idomeni, in the name of the border control village where thousands of refugees are passing through to reach Northern European countries. The aim of the charter is to preserve the social role of journalists in the conditions created by the presence of refugees, migrants, minorities and socially vulnerable groups in Greece, discourage and denounce climates of intolerance, guarantee…

Khadija Ismayilova‘s acceptance speech on the occasion of receiving the UNESCO/ Guillermo Cano World Press Fredom Prize 2016 The mother of imprisoned Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova has accepted the 2016 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize on her daughter’s behalf. Dear ladies and gentleman, distinguished colleagues. You have graciously and generously gathered tonight on the occasion of the award of the annual Guillermo Cano award for press freedom. If you don’t mind, I will take a minute to pay tribute to Mr. Cano, since the award is very much about him, a person, as much as it is about press…

I can’t write that, it seems that more and more European journalists are saying this sentence to themselves when working for a media outlet. The refugee crisis, the Cologne attacks, the Panama papers or the new French surveillance law are some recent examples of sensitive topics that raised the question of self-censorship among journalists. The Friedrich Naumann Stiftung für die Freiheit in co-operation with the EFJ organised an event (02/05/2016) in Brussels to discuss how self-censorship affects journalists’ reporting in the European media industry. The debate was moderated by EFJ Director Renate Schroeder, who at the outset drew the meeting’s attention to a comprehensive quantitative…

How can Public Service Media contribute in a positive way to the refugee crisis? This was the question asked by Nicola Frank, European Broadcasting Union (EBU) Head of European affairs, during the discussion organised by the EBU yesterday (April 27), where the European Federation of Journalists (EFJ) was invited. Information for and about refugees are two sides of the same coin: on the one hand, newcomers need to have access of basic information when arriving in a host country. On the other hand, local residents need to better understand the stories of these refugees. Informing both sides is essential for social cohesion and…